Culture / Other
BBC Philharmonic names Joshua Weilerstein its next chief conductor
The American conductor is due to begin a five-year term in September 2028.
Status: source-checked.
Joshua Weilerstein will become the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra’s next chief conductor in September 2028 for an initial five-year term, The Violin Channel reported Nov. 6. The American conductor succeeds John Storgårds. The appointment sets a future leadership transition, rather than an immediate change in the orchestra’s conducting post.
Weilerstein first worked with the ensemble about a decade ago, according to the report. His recent appearances include a BBC Proms program with clarinetist Martin Fröst featuring concertos by Copland and Artie Shaw alongside Elsa Barraine’s Second Symphony and Rachmaninov’s Symphonic Dances.
He is currently music director of the Orchestre National de Lille and chief conductor of Denmark’s Aalborg Symphony. His Aalborg tenure is due to conclude at the end of the 2027-28 season. Recent guest appearances include the Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony and Staatskapelle Dresden, the outlet reported.
Weilerstein also hosts the music-analysis podcast Sticky Notes, which the report says has exceeded 9 million downloads in 185 countries. The orchestra’s director, Adam Szabo, welcomed the appointment. The announced 2028 start leaves a period before Weilerstein takes the chief-conductor role; the report does not present a full program for that first season.
What we know / what we don't
What we know
- The American conductor is due to begin a five-year term in September 2028.
What we don't know
- Source-reported plans and figures; no independent on-site verification.
The source record